Frame construction for refrigerator door



I 5 2. M K W. 5 f m N n O m. R 8 a VW m m I mo. M 3 M A m W m a a, S o V J. A. DI CHIARO FRAME CONSTRUCTION FOR REFRIGERATOR DOOR Dec. 31, 1968 Flled Feb 17 1967 FIG FIG 2 Dec. 31, 1968 J. A. DI CHIARO FRAME CONSTRUCTION FOR REFRIGERATOR DOOR Sheet Filed Feb. 17, 1967 AT'IJ'ORNEYS United States Patent 3,418,755 FRAME CONSTRUCTION FOR REFRIGERATOR DOOR Joseph A. Di Chiaro, 287 Pinebrook Blvd, New Rochelle, N.Y. 10804 Filed Feb. 17, 1967, Ser. No. 616,810 Claims. (Cl. 49-501) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A frame structure for refrigerator doors or the like, this frame structure having only two extrusions one of which is an outer metal extrusion and the other of which is an inner plastic extrusion of poor thermal conductiviy. The outer metal extrusion has an outer wall whose exterior surface forms an exterior surface of the frame, and this outer wall is integrally connected with a pair of flanges one of Which extends inwardly from an outer edge of the wall and the other of which extends inwardly from the outer wall between the edges thereof, these flanges being parallel to and spaced from each other and extending perpendicularly with respect to the outer wall of the metal extrusion. The plastic extrusion has an inner end wall which extends parallel to and is spaced from the outer wall of the plastic extrusion and which has integrally formed therewith a elongated portion of substantially L-shaped cross section one leg of which extends inwardly from the inner end wall perpendicularly to the latter into overlapping relationship with the intermediate flange of the metal extrusion to which this leg is adhesively secured, the plastic extrusion portion of L-shaped cross section having a second leg which extends parallel to the inner end wall of the plastic extrusion between the flanges of the metal extrusion to which this second leg is joined. The second leg of the plastic extrusion defines with the inner end wall thereof an outer longitudinal groove which is adapted to receive a guiding structure which guides the frame for shifting movement. The part of the outer wall of the metal extrusion which extends inwardly from its intermediate flange and the part of the plastic extrusion which extends inwardly from the longitudinal portion thereof of L-shaped cross section define between themselves an elongated groove adapted to receive a pair of glass sheets which define between themselves an insulating air space.

Background of the invention The invention relates generally to frame structures.

More particularly, the invention relates to a frame structure which is adapted to form part of a refrigerator door of the type used in commercial refrigeration units such as those employed in grocery stores for keeping milk and other dairy products under refrigeration while offering visible inspection to the consumer.

The structure of the present invention is of the same general type as that which is disclosed in US. Patent 3,177,989.

Commercial units of the above type are constantly being opened and closed, so that there is a considerable heat transfer problem. Known structures of this type have the disadvantage of providing a considerable amount of condensation so as to impair the eificiency of the refrigeration unit as well as to reduce the extent to which articles are visible through the door. All metal frames, while they have been used, are disadvantageous because of the high thermal conductivity thereof, while when wood has been used as part of the frame, the wood swells to detract undesirably from the dimensional stability of the structure. On the other hand, all plastic frames do not maintain a "ice good appearance and do not wear as well as metal while at the same time being expensive to fabricate.

Summary of the invention Generally speaking, in accordance with the invention, the frame of the slidable refrigerator door will be made up of only two extrusions, one of which is an outer metal extrusion and the other of which is an inner plastic extrusion. This plastic extrusion is preferably polystyrene or polyvinyl chloride, although other plastics may be used. With the construction of the invention the plastic extrusion is joined to the metal extrusion simply by being adhesively secured thereto, although additional screw fasteners may also be used.

Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a frame structure which is exceedingly simple in that it requires only a very small number of differently constructed components to be assembled together in an exceedingly simple manner.

Also, it is an object of the invention to provide a frame structure which will have highly favorable thermal properties, and this is brought about not only by using an inner plastic extrusion for the frame, but also by providing the plastic extrusion with a substantial thickness.

Furthermore, it is an object of the invention to provide a frame structure which will have good wearing properties and which at the same time will be capable of retaining its good appearance.

Still other objects and advantages of the invention will in part be obvious and will in part be apparent from the specification.

The invention accordingly comprises the features of construction, combination of elements, and arrangement of parts which will be exemplified in the constructions hereafter set forth, and the scope of the invention will be indicated in the claims.

Brief description of the drawings For a fuller understanding of the invention, reference is had to the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a refrigerator door construction embodying the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary section of the structure of FIG. 1 taken along line 22 of FIG. 1 in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary perspective illustration of the metal extrusion;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary perspective illustration of the plastic extrusion; and

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary perspective illustration of a refrigerator door having the construction of the invention.

Description of a preferred embodiment Referring now to FIG. 1, there is fragmentarily illustrated therein that part of a refrigerator freezer cabinet which includes the door structure provided with the frame of the invention. This cabinet has a base portion 14 which is provided with guide ribs 13 along which the refrigerated doors 9 are individually movable in a horizontal direction.

The doors 9 include handles 10, respectively, which are fixed in any suitable way to outer metal extrusions 11 of the frames. The frames carry transparent glass or plastic panes 12.

Referring to FIG. 2, it will be seen that the guide ribs 13 are capped by metal channels 18 forming tracks which coact with dowels 19. The outer metal extrusion 11, which may be made of aluminum, has fixed thereto an inner plastic extrusion 20, and this extrusion 20 is formed with an outer groove 22 receiving the dowels 19 which coact with the tracks 18 so that in this way the doors are guided for movement.

In accordance with the invention the frame of each door requires only two extrusions, namely the outer metal extrusion 11 and the inner plastic extrusion 20. The outer metal extrusion 11 has an outer wall 24 situated in a vertical plane and having an inner edge 26 and an outer edge 28. At its outer edge 28 the wall 24 has an integral inwardly extending flange 30, while between its edges 26 and 28 the outer metal extrusion 11 has an intermediate flange 32 which is parallel to the flange 30 as well as to the edges 26 and 28. The flanges 30 and 32 are respectively provided with integral ribs 34 and 36 extending toward each other to define with the outer wall 24 an elongated hollow channel 38 for a purpose described below in connection with FIG. 5. The flange 32 is provided at the region of its inner edge 40 with an extension 42 of substantially L-shaped cross section defining with the flange 32 an inwardly directed groove 44 whose interior is directed toward the inner end wall 46 of the plastic extrusion 20.

This extrusion 20 includes in addition to its inner end wall 46, an elongated body portion which extends beneath and is joined to the flange 32 and which is formed with the groove 22. Thus, the plastic extrusion 20 includes, in addition to its inner end wall 46, which is substantially parallel to and spaced from the outer wall 24 of the metal extrusion 11, an inner portion 48 having one leg 50 which extends integrally inwardly from the wall 46 parallel to the edges thereof and situated between these edges, and the plastic extrusion has a second leg 52 perpendicular to the leg 50 of the portion 48 of L- shaped cross section, this leg 52 extending between and engaging the flanges 30 and 32 of the outer metal extrusion 11. The leg 52 terminates in a lip 54 which engages the inner free edge of the flange 30.

The surfaces of the flanges 30 and 32 which are directed toward each other as well as the inner surfaces of the ribs 34 and 36 carry a suitable adhesive which also engages the portion 48 of the plastic extrusion at the surface thereof which is directed away from the groove 22, so that in this way the plastic extrusion 20 is adhesively secured to the metal extrusion 11. If desired, screws 56 may extend through suitable bores formed in the plastic extrusion and their threads may be self-tapping and can threadedly engage the metal extrusion 11 in the groove 44 thereof, in the manner shown for the right door in FIG. 2, so that in this way an additional securing of the extrusions to each other can be achieved.

The above-described details of the metal extrusion 11 and the plastic extrusion 20 are also illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4, respectively.

Thus, the plastic extrusion 20 has an inwardly directed flange 60 extending inwardly beyond its portion 48 while the outer wall 24 of the metal extrusion has an inwardly directed flange portion 62 extending inwardly beyond the flange 32, and these flanges 60 and 62 define between themselves a space for receiving the panes 12. These panes 12 are situated in a well-known manner with the interposition of a suitable layer of insulation, for example, against the inner surfaces of the flanges 62 and 60, and a suitable spacer structure 64 may be interposed between the panes 12 to press them outwardly against the flanges 60 and 62. In this way the panes 12 define between themselves an insulating air space 66.

It will be noted that all of the walls which form the plastic extrusion 20 are of a considerably greater thickness than the walls which form the metal extrusion 11, so that an exceedingly good thermal insulation is provided by way of the plastic extrusion 20.

Referring to FIG. 5, it will be seen that the straight portions of the frame of each refrigerator door have mitered corners where they butt against each other, and in order to fix the straight portions of the frame to each other, an angle member is situated at each corner of the frame. This angle member 70 has a pair of legs respectively received in the channels 38 of a pair of butting straight metal extrusion portions 11, in the manner shown in FIG. 5. The ribs 34 and 36 are pressed with any suitable tool into openings 72 of the angle member 70 at each corner of the frame, so that in this way the straight sections of the frame are rigidly fastened together.

It is apparent, therefore, that with the structure of the invention only two extrusions are required, one being the outer metal extrusion 11 and the other being the inner plastic extrusion 20, and these extrusions are very simply joined to each other by way of an adhesive and also by way of screws 56. The doors are guided at their upper edges by way of ribs extending into the upwardly directed grooves 22 of the upper frame section, while the structure 14 includes at its ends vertically extending ribs received in the grooves 22 of the vertically extending plastic extrusions of each frame.

It will thus be seen that the objects set forth above, among those made apparent from the preceding description, are efliciently attained and, since certain changes may be made in the above constructions without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, it, is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described, and all statements of the scope of the invention which, as a matter of language, might be said to fall therebetween.

What is claimed is:

1. In a door, such as a sliding refrigerator door, a frame structure having only two extrusions one of which is an outer metal extrusion and the other of which is an inner plastic extrusion of poor thermal conductivity, said inner plastic extrusion being fixed to said outer metal extrusion and said extrusions being adhesively secured to each other, said metal and plastic extrusions both being composed of solid walls and said walls of said plastic extrusion being substantially thicker than those of said metal extrusion, said outer metal extrusion having an outer wall provided with an exterior surface which forms the exterior surface of the frame, and said outer wall of said metal extrusion having parallel inner and outer edges, said metal extrusion having between said edges an inwardly directed flange extending parallel to said edges and being perpendicular to said outer wall, said inner plastic extrusion having an inner end wall provided with an exposed side surface forming an inner surface of the frame, and said inner wall having an inner flange portion parallel to said outer wall of said metal extrusion and extending inwardly beyond and perpendicular to said flange of said metal extrusion so that the part of said outer wall of said metal extrusion which extends inwardly beyond said flange thereof defines with said inner flange portion of said plastic extrusion a groove for receiving a transparent means such as a glass assembly surrounded and carried by the frame, said plastic extrusion having an exposed inner surface extending parallel to and overlapping said flange of said metal extrusion and joined thereto for fixing said extrusions to each other, and said plastic extrusion having an outer longitudinal body portion formed with an outer groove for receiving a guiding structure which guides the frame for shifting movement.

2. The combination of claim 1 and wherein said flange of said metal extrusion is integrally connected with a longitudinally extending extrusion portion of L-shaped cross section forming with said flange a groove which is directed toward said inner flange of said plastic extrusion and which is adapted to receive the threaded shank of a screw passing through said flange of said plastic extrusion.

3. The combination of claim 1 and wherein said outer r 5 metal extrusion is formed between said flange and outer edge thereof in the region of said longitudinal body portion of said plastic extrusion with a channel for receiving structure forfixing to each other metal extrusion portions which are angularly arranged with respect to each other at corners of the frame.

4. The combination of claim 1 and wherein said metal extrusion has at said outer edge thereof an inwardly di rected flange spaced from and extending parallel to said flange which is between said edges of said metal extrusion, and said longitudinal body portion of said plastic extrusion extending between and engaging said flanges of said metal extrusion.

5. The combination of claim 1 and wherein a pair of glass plates are respectively situated between and engage said outer wall of said metal extrusion and said inner References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 4/1965 Di Chiaro 49-425 2/1967 -B0hn 52499 XR FOREIGN PATENTS 1,040,221 10/ 1958 Germany.

KENNETH DOWNEY, Primary Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R. 

